Craig man pleads guilty to assault on officers, meth distribution

Craig local Justin Warren pleaded guilty to second-degree assault on two Moffat County Sheriff's deputies and methamphetamine distribution on Nov. 17.

Warren was sentenced to serve 16 ½ years in Colorado Department of Corrections facilities with three years parole upon release.

The arrest affidavit for Warren's original meth distribution charge is sealed.

The assault charges come from an incident that took place on Oct 14. at Moffat County Jail.

According to the arrest affidavit for the assault incident that was written by Craig Police Department's Cpl. Bryan Gonzales, Warren struck Sgt. Steven Booker and Cpl. Michael Toovey after confronting him about disobeying jail rules.

Booker and Toovey approached Warren in his cell pod after receiving reports that he had not returned his spork to the kitchen staff and proceeded to curse at the staff when asked to return the utensil.

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Before turning violent, Warren accused the officers of bullying him as he was escorted to lock down. He then turned on Booker, who attempted to taze him but the shot did not connect.

"(Warren) swung his right fist and struck Sgt. Booker on the left side of the face," the affidavit states.

The two deputies subdued Warren but the affidavit relates a drawn-out struggle between the officers and inmate.

Booker reported some soreness in his left shoulder and tenderness in left elbow as well as a cut on his left hand after the encounter.

District Attorney Brett Barkey stated, "This is an appropriate outcome for someone who assaults law enforcement officers doing their jobs and seeks to enrich themselves by bringing dangerous drugs to our community. The District Attorney's Office, the All Crimes Enforcement Team and our law enforcement partners will continue to aggressively investigate and prosecute those who attack our officers and who profit from poison."